Handle grip and method of making the same



Feb. 12,; '1 929.

A. A. KRAEUTER HANDLE GRIP AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Filed April 8, 1925 Patented Feb. 12, .1929.

UNITED I STATES orrlcn.

TNUR A. KfiAEUTEB, OF SOUTH ORANGE, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO THE KBOY= DON COMPANY, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, A CQRPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

Haunts enrrnnn Mnrnon or a ran saran.

' a neation and April e,

"lhisinventionrelates to im rovements in handle grips and method making the same and particularly to grips that are used on clubs, racquets, bats, etc. for sporting or it athletic purposes and while its principal purpose and use may be in connection with golf clubs and golf shafts, it may be also used in connection with tennis racquets, baseball bats, polo mallets and other implew ments or articles for similar uses.

Theprincipal purpose of this invention is the provision of a handle grip which may be readily and cheaply applied to the handle of the article and which will securely and w evenly fit the same and which will be permanently secured thereto against loosening by accident or otherwise, and which in addition has the very important advantage of being waterproof and also becoming sticky w or tacky or slightly adhesive when in use so as to afi ord a firm and secure grip by the user thereof. This is very superior to the ordinar form of leather grips now in use which readily become unravelled and loosened due to stretching and breaking or wearing of the securing twine and which also become very slippery and at times unusable when wet.

"and such other objects as may hereinafter appear, this invention consists in'the construction, combination and arrangement of part-s hereinafter described and method'of making the same, reference-being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, and which show merely for the purpose of illustrative disclosure certain em odiments of the invention, it being ex- W pressly understood, however, that various changes may be made in practice within the scope of the claims without digressingfrom my inventive ideas.

In the drawings- Figure 1 represents a view in perspective of the handle portion of a golf club with a V grip constructed according to my inventionp Figure 2 is a vertical longitudinal section thereof.

llt will be seen that this invention has been illustrated in the drawings as applied to a golf club or golf shaft and it is to be understood that this is for illustrative purposes only and that the invention is applicable to till To the accomplishment of the foregoing 1925. Serial No. $1,?17.

the various articles hereinbefore enumerated as well as many others.

Referring now to the drawings the numeral 1 designates the shaft of the golf club to which the grip is to be applied. In this example a layer of felt 2 or other suitable material is ti htly wrapped around the handle end of tie shaft to assist 'in building it up 'to its proper softness and thickness. This layer of felt 2 is pasted, glued or otherwise secured to the shaft. @n this layer of felt 2 is woven or plaited the grip 3 proper of suitable textile material. This is woven directly upon the handle by runnin the shaft through a suitable machine. %t is woven very tightly so as to. bind the felt very tightly to theshaft and so as to fit the shaft very tightly. and securely and so as to present a firm and even outer surface. This results in the felt'layer and the textile layer being securely attached to the shaft so that they will not slip or become disarranged.

(in top of this layer of textile material 3 A is applied a coating or a plurality of coatings of a lelcquer 4 or other suitable material of a sufficient thickness to completely cover the textile ifiaterial 3.- It is possible that some of this coating penetrates through the of the grip ytogether. Furthermore, this coating also has the function of preventing the textile layer from unravelling and from.

loosening from its applied position. At the stated that the textile material is woven felt and assists in holding the various layers tightly so that it presents an even outer surface, it is to be understood that this is a relative term only and that although it is even, generally speaking, the separate threads cause alternate depressions and ridges and it is these alternate depressions and ridges that form the depressions and ridges inthe outer coating 4. This outer coating 4: must have the following characteristics: It must be waterprooof and it must become sticky or tacky or slightly adhesive in use due to the warmth of the users hands;

it also must have sullicient body to give extended use and service.

The method of making this hahdle grip,

therefore, includes the following steps: first,

Wrapping a layerof felt or other suitable material about the gripping end of the shaft; second, weaving or plaiting securely thereon a textile fabric or material; and thirdly, coating this textile material'with a lacquer or other suitable material which has the necessary characteristics as called for above.

It is to be understood that while I have described and shown a grip having the felt under layer, this layer may be omitted Where desired and the grip consist ofthe woven or plaited textile material tightly secured to the gripping part of the handle and the layer of lacquer or other suitable material thereover.

This processis also advantageous in repairing articles of the kinds mentioned and similar articles.

It is also to be understood that this layer or sleeve of woven textile material. may be made and applied to the handle after it is made or woven. Then the layer of lacquer or other suitable material 4 is applied which causes the textile layer to shrink fast .on the shaft.

- What I claim is 1. In combination with a handle or shaft, a handle grip including a tube or sleeve of woven or plaited textile material on the gripping portion of the handle, and an outer coating of material thereon, said coating being of suflicient thickness so as to be entirely impermeable to moisture and at the same time to reproduce the indentations or impressions of the textile material on the outer surface of said coating, said coating also being sticky, tacky or slightly adhesive when grasped by the hand in use. '2. A grip for a handle or shaft including a layer of woven or plaited textile material coated with a waterproof material which becomes sticky, tacky or slightly adhesive when grasped by the hand in use, said coating being sufficiently thin to reproduce the surface roughness of the fabric on the surface of the coating, which is therefore slightly rough and uneven and affords a firm gripping surface.

3. A grip for a handle or shaft including a layer of'woven or plaited textile material and a coating of waterproof material securely anchored to said layer of textile material, said coating being sufficiently thin to reproduce on its outer surface the surface shaft and then coating said layer of textile material with a composition which has the characteristics of being waterproof and also being sticky, tacky or slightly adhesive when muse.

5. The method of making, a handle grip for golf shafts and the like including tightly weaving or plaiting a layer of textile material on the gripping portion of the shaft and then coating said layer of textile material with a substantially thick layer of composition which has the characteristics of being waterproof and also being sticky, tacky or slightly adhesive when in use.

6. The method of making a handle grip for golf shafts and the like including applying a tube or sleeve of wovenor plaited textile material -on the gripping portion of the shaft and then coating said tube or sleeve of textile material with acomposition which has the characteristics of being Waterproof and also sticky, tacky or slightly adhesive when in use, said composition causing the tube or sleeve to shrink fast on the shaft.

7. The method of making a grip for handles, shafts and the like including weaving or plaiting a layer of textile fabricdire'ctly on the gripping portion of said handle, shaft or the like and then coating said layer of textile material with a layer of waterproof composition thin enough to reproduce the surface roughness of the textile layer on the outer surface of the coating.

8. The method of making an integral grip for handles, shafts and the like, including weaving or plaiting an integral layer of textile fabric in the form of a tube directly and tightly on the gripping portion of the handle, shaft or the like, then coating said layer of textile fabric with a layer of waterproof composition thin enough to permeate the textile material and become sccurely anchored thereto to form an integral part thereof.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing,

ARTHUR A. KRAEUTER. 

